Video: Visit with BevForce; Discusses State of the Job Market

When it comes to the state of the economy, the job market and, more specifically, its losses and gains, are key indicators of how things are going. So, in looking at the beverage economy, it seemed appropriate to pay a visit to Josh Wand at BevForce, a career network and executive placement agency for the beverage industry, to discuss the state of the job market for our industry.

Wand, who launched BevForce only a few years ago, is right in the thick of it. His firm’s job board and his executive placement division work with beverage companies of all sizes, including large publically traded organizations and some of todays most talked about emerging brands. (Note: BevForce has a referral agreement with BevNET)

According to Wand, things are starting to look up, assuming you are in the right sector. “It seems that confidence is building again,” he says, also pointing out that this industry hasn’t been hit as hard as others since “beverage is a basic need.” But we’re still not there yet, with the hiring market still behind the peak levels that he saw in 2005. Some of this has to do with larger publicly traded firms that haven’t completed the full cuts that they’ve planned.

However, these cuts are creating opportunities for emerging brands to access an increased pool of talent. And in many cases, that talent – seasoned beverage veterans who have been cut from bigger companies are seeking out smaller firms where they can presumably have more control over their destiny.

BevForce is even more encouraged by what it predicts for 2011. November is traditionally the time that hiring plans for the next year start to come together; BevForce, according to Wand, anticipates a “significant increase in hiring” with most of the growth coming in what are today’s hottest categories, including coconut water, craft beer, and other products that fall into the greater health and wellness category.

In the video, meet BevForce Founder and CEO, Josh Wand, who gives a quick overview of BevForce, discusses the past job market, and describes what he expects to see in 2011.